Traditional 2G and 2.5G cellular infrastructure using standard licensed cellular protocol handsets (“Standard Mobile Stations” or “MS”) requires use of a base transceiver station (BTS) and a base station controller (BSC) also using that cellular protocol. The Standard Mobile Stations communicate with the cellular infrastructure over a cellular air interface such as Um (for GSM and CDMA2000) or Uu (for UMTS). The traditional 2G and 2.5G cellular infrastructures are relatively costly to deploy due to particulars of the technology and because of the relatively few number of subscribers which can be supported in a given cellular infrastructure deployment.
A Generic Access Network (GAN) is generally less expensive and easier to deploy when compared to traditional 2G and 2.5G cellular infrastructures. Using a GAN however, a dual mode handset is generally required in order to communicate with the cellular infrastructure through an Access Point (AP) and a Generic Access Network Controller (GANC), using an Up interface. The requirement of a dual mode phone forces subscribers to obtain new cellular phones, which include the additional expense and complexity of a dual mode transceiver. It would be desirable to enable the benefits of a GAN to be realized in a cellular infrastructure such that only the use of a Standard Mobile Station is required.